Self-dumping scow



2 Sheets-Sheet '1.

(No Model.)

J. S. ROGERS.

SELF DUMPING scow.

No. 357,857. Patented Feb. 15. 1887.

MiMdMr a yzzf UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JAMES SWIFT ROGERS, OF ROOKPORT, MASSACHUSETTS.

SELF-DUMPING SCOW.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 357,857, dated February 15, 1887.

Application filed September 23, 1886. Serial No. 214,332. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, JAMES SWIFT RoGERs, a citizen of theUnited States, and a resident of Rockport, in the county of Essex and State of Massachusetts, haveinvented a new and useful Improvement in Self-Dumpin g Scows, of which the following, taken in connection with the accompanying drawings, is a specification.

This invention relates to improvements in selfdumping scows, and it is carried out as follows, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, where- Figure 1 represents a plan View, and Fig. 2 represents a partial side elevation and longitudinal section, of the improved scow. Fig. 3 represents an end View; and Fig. 4 represents a cross-section on the broken line A B, shown in Fig. 1.

Similar letters refer to similar parts wherever they occur on the different parts of the drawings.

a is the body of the scow,having a recess, a, in its bottom, whichrecess extends from end to end of the scow, as shown.

a is the well for receiving the stone or other material that is to be dumped from the scow. To the lower sides of the well a are hinged a pair of hollow floatable doors, b Z), as shown, and to the under sides of such floatable doors are secured the respective keels bb, that may be straight or arched, and said keels extend from end to end of the said doors, and they serve the purpose of strengthening the doors, and also for the purpose of receiving the chains, links, ropes, &c., c 0, by means of which the doors I) b are held in a closed position against the recessed bottom of the scow while loading and transporting the dumpingmaterials, and for this latter purpose I make on the under side of each keel b a longitudinal groove or channel, 1), (shown in Figs. 2, 3, and 4,) such grooves or channels being preferably closed by means of the respective plates or covers b h to prevent the chains from sagging and fouling.

The floatable doors?) I) are hinged to opposite sides of the lower edges of the well a by means of metal hinges d d, having plates (1 and d, secured, respectively, to the interior sides of the well aand to the upper side of the doors Z1 b,the plates d (1 being each of equal length, or nearly so, to the depth of the well a, and the plates (2 cl are made as long, or nearly so, as the 'width of each of the doors I) I), such plates serving to strengthen the sides of the well and the doors,as well as to protect such parts from wear and tear when filling, unloading, or transporting the loaded scow.

As a further protection of the well sides and tops of doors, I secure to such parts, between the hinge-plates d d, respectively, tothe interior of the well and tops of doors, the metal plates 6 e, the plates 6 0 being sufficiently long, or nearly so, to extend from top to bottom of the well, and the plates 0 6 equal in length to the width of each door I), or nearly so, as shown in the drawings.

By having a pair of hollow air-chambered doors, each of which is equal in width to one-' half of the width of the lower portion of the well a, or nearly so, and hinged, respectively, to opposite sides of the well a, the load can be discharged centrally from the scow without the danger of careening it, as is a common objection to that kind of self-dumping scows, in which one single door of equal width with the well is used and hinged to one side of the well-room only. By having two fioatable doors hinged as described, each about onehalf the width of the well, and adapted to swing downward when released, the scow can be used to dump or discharge its contents in very much shallower water as compared with a singledoor scow.

In self-dumping scows the well a is generally made wider at the bottom than at the top, as shown in Fig. 4, to permit a free discharge of the contents of the well when the doors are released, and the latter are preferably so hung as to permit of their being swunga little back of a vertical position when fully opened, and thus to form, as it were, a continuation of the inclined sides of the well. \Vhenfully openand swung back of a vertical position, the buoyant doors would be held open by reason of their floata-bility or buoyancy, and it would require a great expenditure of power to swing the doors over what may be called their deadcenters, and to obviate such difficulty I secure to the recessed bottom of the scow, or to the movable doors, or in any other suitable manner, springs ff, as shown in Figs. 3 and 4, which springs may be made in the form of flat, elliptic, or coiled, or other well-known forms, as may be desired, and the object of said springs is to serve as elastic cushions or bunters against the doors when swung fully open, such springs having atendency to swing the doors inward sufficiently to pass beyond their dead-centers, when the buoyancy of the doors will cause them to be automatically returned to the closed positions shown in the drawings.

The hollow air-chambered doors b b are extended longitudinally beyond the ends of well a, as shown in Fig. 2, by which arrangement the buoyancy or floatability of the doors is materially increased and the doors made to shut automatically and much faster than dumpingdoors without such longitudinal extensions.

The longitudinal sides of the scow outside of the recessed portion a may be carried down ward, as shown at a a' in dotted lines in Fig. 3, to form side heels on a level, or nearly so, with the door-keels b b, so as to keep the scow on an even keel if left on a beach or flat at low water.

At each end of the scow and to the deck of u it is secured awindlass consisting of standards or bearings G G, in which are journaled the chain-barrels g g, to which are secured the wheels 9' g, having perforations g on their circumferences, as shown, in which a bar or lever is inserted to turn the barrels g g, as is usual in windlasses. is secured to them, or to the common shaft on which they are fastened, the ratchet-wheel g, in the teeth of which engages the pawl h, the lower end of which is pivoted to the deck of the scow, as shown in Figs. 1 and 2. Each pawl h is jointed between its toothed upper 'e'nd'and its fulcrum, so that it may be released easily from the ratchet-wheel when it is desired to dump the scow. To each end of the scow-deck is journaled a roller, k, on which the chains 0 q are guided from one windlass to the other, passing outside of the scow and below the doors I) I), as shown in the drawings. Instead of the single roller 70, a pair of pulleys or shorter rollers may be used at each end of the scow, one for each of the respective chains 0 0, without departing from the essence of my invention.

To close the doors I) b preparatory to loading the scow, it is only necessary to turn the barrels g gby means of hand-spikes orlevers i11- serted in the holes in the wheels gg, or,in other words, to turn the barrels so as to cause the chains to be wound tightly upon them,as shown in Figs. 1, 2, and 3, the pawls h h preventing the chains from being unwound until released at the proper time by the man in'charge.

The mechanism for releasing the pawls h h from their respective ratchet-wheels g g is carried out as follows: About midway on the scow-deck, or other suitable part is pivoted, at Z, the releasing-lever Z, and to opposite sides of the fulcrum Z are pivoted to said lever Z the rods Z Z, one for each Windlass. The outer end of each rod Z is hinged to a crank, m, on the rock-shaft m, that is located in suitable bear- Between the wheels 9" ings, n a a, secured to the scow-deck. m is a second crank on shaft on, the pin on which passes through the jointed part of the pawl 71-, as shown. L is a locking-pin placed in a hole or socket in the scow-deck, so as to retain the lever Z in the locked position shown in Fig. l; but any other suitable device may be used to secure the lever Z in a locked or unlocked position, and, if so desired, a lock andkey may be added without departing from the spirit of my invention. It will thus be seen that by simply throwing over the single lever Zthe chains at both ends of the scow are simultaneously released, thus liberating the doors b b and allowing the scow to be instantly and evenly discharged.

It will be seen by reference to the drawings that the door-suppmrting chains are arranged entirely outside of the hold or well a, thus forming no obstruction whatever to the proper loading and discharge of the scow.

Having thus fully described the nature, construction, and operation of my invention, I

wish to secure by Letters Patent and claim- -1. A dumping-scow having the well a and recessed bottom a and a pair of hollow airchambered floatable doors,b b, hinged, respectively, to opposite sides of the lower part of the well, as and for the purpose set forth.

2. In a self-dumping scow, a pair of hollow floatable doors, b b, hinged to opposite sides of the lower part of the well a, and having the grooved or channeled heels 2) b, to strengthen the doors I) b, and to receive-the chains 0 c, as herein set forth and described.

3. In a dumping-scow, the springs ff, in combination with the scow a and its hinged floatable doors]; I), said springs being adapted to impart a closing movement to the doors b b, as set forth.

4.,The scow at, having well a and a pair of hollow fioatable doors, I) 6, combined with the hinges cZ (Z, having the extensions cZ cZ, and the strengthening and protecting bars 6 6, arranged between the extensions d d, respectively, as and for the purpose set forth.

, 5. A dumpingscow having well a, combined with a pair of hollow floatable doors, I) b, hinged at the lower part of the well and extended in a longitudinal direction beyond the ends of the well and to or beyond the ends of the body of the scow, as herein set forth.

6. A self-dumping scow having the well a anda pair of hollow fioatable doors, I) b, hinged to opposite sides of the lower part of the well, combined with windlasses at the two ends of the scow, and chains 0 0, connecting them and carried outside of the scow without entering the well a, as and for the purpose set forth.

7. In a dumping-scow, the well a and hollow floatable doors I) b, hinged to the opposite sides of the lower part of the well, as described, in combination with the chains 0 0, arranged outside of the scow and below the doors I) b, the barrels g g, ratchet-wheels g pawls h h,-and crank-shafts m m, arranged at opposite ends of the scow-deck, the single re leasing and locking lever Z, and the rods Z Z, doors of the scow, in combination with a sinconnecting the said lever Z with the cranks m gle releasing and looking lever, Z, and connectm on the shafts mm, as and for the purpose set ing mechanism, as set forth. I 5 forth. In testimony whereof I have signed my name 8. In combination, the scow-body a, its well i to this specification, in the presence of two suba, floatable hollow hinged doors I) b, grooved scribing witnesses, on this 22d day of Septemkeels b b, Windlass-barrels g g, guide rollers her, A. D. 1886.

or pulleys k k, and chains 0 0, connecting the barrels g g and passing outside of the scow JAMES SWIFT ROGERS IO and below the doors b b, as set forth. XVitnesses: 9. Inascow, apairof'windlasses, and chains ALBAN ANDREN,

c 0 connecting them outside of the hinged HENRY CHADBOURN. 

